The teep, also called the push kick, is one of the most used techniques in Muay Thai competitions, and it’s the most versatile weapon you have with your feet. It is often called the kicking version of the jab because of its diverse uses and effectiveness as a long-range weapon.
Muay Thai newbies often confuse the teep with the front kick, but they’re two different techniques. Performing a teep entails bringing a leg up and extending your foot toward the target from your knees, while a front kick involves swinging up your leg at the target from your hips.
The push kick has many uses in Muay Thai, including serving to create distance, keeping opponents off you, stopping opponents from getting off combinations, and even setting up combinations. This article will explore five effective ways Muay Thai fighters use the teep and why you should also do the same.
Five Effective Ways To Use The Teep In Muay Thai
Ready to learn some of the most effective ways to utilize your push kick? Let’s jump right into our list:
1) Creating Distance
Just like a jab can help you to determine if an opponent is in your punching range, the teep does the same for your kicks. Your legs cover more distance than your arms, making the teep a relatively safe way to measure your opponent’s distance from you without putting you at much risk. The teep is even more effective as a range finder when you’re taller than your opponent.
Throw the push kick fast and light when using it as a range finder. Ideally, you want to aim at your opponent’s lead leg or abdomen to reduce the odds of the kick getting caught since kickboxing styles like Muay Thai allow for that. You don’t need to drive at the hips or fully extend your leg when using the teep as a range finder. The goal is to touch the target and quickly bring your leg back. Your opponent’s lead leg being the closest target to you makes it easier to attack and bring your leg back before they can react.
Using the teep as a range finder also opens the possibility of using the technique as a disruptive strike or feint to set up a more powerful attack. Your opponent starts to anticipate you using it as a range finder, which makes it easier for you to use it to set up something else. You can throw the technique to disrupt your opponent when you think they’re about to fire off a combination. You typically want to throw the teep with your lead leg when using it to determine range.
2) To Break Your Opponent’s Momentum & Stamina
Your opponent’s gut should be your primary target when using the teep to throw them off balance or stop their advance. A teep to the gut can also be debilitating, particularly if you land it while your opponent inhales.
You don’t have to throw the teep with maximum power to use it to keep opponents off you; it just needs to be thrown firmly and accurately. Your opponent’s forward momentum will work against them and increase the power it lands with, so focus on throwing the technique cleanly.
Firm teeps to the gut can help break down an opponent, and consistently landing the technique will diminish their cardio.
The part of the abdomen that the teep lands on determines how your opponent’s body will react. Striking the upper part of the abdomen tends to push people backward while striking the lower part tends to make opponents bring down their heads slightly as they lose their balance, putting you in a position to follow up with techniques like a roundhouse.
3) To Stop An Opponent’s Advance
A hard teep to an opponent’s lead thigh deals damage and hinders their movement. It’s an effective way to frustrate opponents without putting yourself at significant risk, as long as you only target the lead leg. Going for the rear leg leaves you exposed to counters.
A kick to the thighs often works best on advancing opponents as it can stop them from gaining distance and disrupt their rhythm. Turn the heel of your lead leg slightly outward when throwing the technique to avoid your foot slipping off your opponent’s sweaty thigh instead of pushing on it.
4) To Knock Them Back
A successful teep to the chest is one of the coolest moves used in Muay Thai. This technique isn’t thrown to prevent an opponent from inching closer to you; it’s thrown with lots of power to knock them back and possibly to the ground.
The technique should be thrown with maximum power, meaning you drive your hips forward while driving your foot through your opponent. Throwing the teep with maximum power makes it harder for opponents to catch it, leaving you vulnerable to strikes and sweeps.
When done correctly, landing this technique should force your opponent to take a few steps back, giving you space to follow up with more powerful attacks.
Aim for your opponent’s solar plexus or higher to ensure they lose their balance when the teep lands since these areas are higher than their center of gravity, making it easier to knock them over.
5) To Feint And Score A Knockout
This is probably one of the most effective ways to use the teep. When used at the right moment, the teep can be a game changer in the ring. Feinting just makes it even harder for your opponent to predict what’s next overall, combine it with a teep, they’ll never see that knockout move coming.
Master Landing The Teep On All These Targets
The teep is one of the most effective strikes used in Muay Thai, and you’ll get a lot more out of it once you master how to land it on the targets discussed in this article. Watch some tapes of legends like Buakaw Banchamek to see how effective the technique can be at all levels.
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